Secrets to a Great Baked Ham

Baked ham is one of the easiest main dishes you can make for any holiday, but even easy dishes could benefit from a few tips and tricks.

Read first: Check the tag or label of the ham to make sure you have a pre-cooked ham. Also, check for suggested cooking temperatures. Most pre-cooked hams need to cook to 140°F, while uncooked hams need to go to 160°F.
Put cut side down: Help the ham remain moist during baking by placing the cut side down in the pan. When the glaze is applied, you'll spread it on the rind so it drips down into the slices.
Cover tightly with foil: You want to create as much of a seal as you can to lock in moisture. This will help avoid a dry ham.
Use a thermometer: Ham can quickly go from perfectly moist and tender to dry and hard, but if you use a meat thermometer, you can watch the ham's temperature and know precisely when it's ready to pull from the oven.
Rest before slicing: Once the ham comes out of the oven, let it rest for about 15 to 20 minutes. Use the pan sauce as a basting liquid, and drizzle it over the ham every few minutes during this resting period.
Pick a good ham sauce: Baked ham by itself is delightful, but ham sauces provide extra moisture and flavor. The sauce in the bottom of the pan will be great. Jezebel sauce is a fantastic option.

Ingredients for Baked Ham With Brown Sugar Glaze

A baked ham requires just a handful of ingredients. Most of them are used in the glaze. Here's what you'll need:

Ham: This recipe calls for a boneless, spiral-cut ham. You can use this technique on other types of ham, but the recipe may need to be adjusted for time.
Water: Water is added to the bottom of the roasting pan. This helps prevent any drips of grease from the ham from burning (and setting off the fire alarm). But when mixed with the ham drippings and glaze, it also works as a sauce for the ham.
Dark brown sugar: You can use light brown sugar if you like, but dark has a deeper, stronger flavor. If you need to use white sugar, add a little molasses to it first.
Honey: This adds more sweetness but also thickens up the glaze so it sticks to the ham.
Whole-grain Dijon mustard: To balance the sweetness of the sugar and honey.
Ground cinnamon and ground allspice: Many baked ham recipes call for studding the ham with whole cloves, but we like getting this flavor from the glaze instead.

Southern Living Baked Ham with Brown Sugar Glaze ingredients — Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox

How To Bake a Ham

Baking a ham is actually an easy process. It just requires a few hours of time and some last-minute glazing work to create a beautiful crust. Find a detailed recipe and ingredient list further down the page. For now, here's a brief outline:

Step 1. Bring the ham to room temp: Ham will cook more evenly if it's warmer than fridge temperature, so put it on the counter for an hour (but not more than two hours) before you plan to begin baking.
Step 2. Prepare the pan: Pour water into the bottom of the roasting pan. Then, set the ham, cut side down, in the pan. Cover the pan and ham with aluminum foil, tightly sealing the foil around the edges of the pan.
Step 3. Bake the ham: Cook the ham until it nears 130°F. The time will depend on how big the ham is.
Step 4. Make brown sugar glaze: Combine the remaining ingredients, and stir until well combined.
Step 5. Glaze ham: When the ham registers 130°F, take the aluminum foil off the pan, and brush some of the glaze on the ham rind. Increase the oven temperature, and return the ham to the oven to bake 10 minutes. Add more of the glaze, and bake 10 minutes. Finally, add the remaining glaze, and bake 15 minutes. Remove the ham from the oven when the temperature reaches 140°F or after the glaze is baked on.
Step 6. Rest ham: Let the ham sit, uncovered for 20 to 30 minutes. You can baste the ham with the pan sauce. Then serve.

How To Make Brown Sugar Glaze for Ham

To make a brown sugar glaze for ham, you'll mix the glaze ingredients together in a bowl until well combined. You do not need to heat this glaze, but you can if you want. However, you should let the mixture cool before applying it to the ham. Warm glaze will be too thin to adhere to the pork rind.

How Long To Cook a Ham

The exact time you'll need to cook a ham depends on the size of the ham and whether or not it has a bone.

As a general rule, boneless hams take less time than bone-in hams. So the boneless, spiral cut ham in this recipe needs about 15 to 20 minutes per pound. A bone-in ham requires 22 to 25 minutes per pound. Read our guide to learn how long to cook a holiday ham.

How Much Ham Per Person

You'll need about 1/3 to 1/2 pound of boneless ham per person. This 5- to 6-pound boneless ham will feed 8 to 12 people. If you want a bone-in ham, plan for 3/4 to 1 pound of ham per person. If you're serving another protein, such as turkey, you may need less.

Planning a big party? Find out how much ham you'll need.

What To Serve With Baked Ham

Ham is a great main dish at Easter, Christmas, Thanksgiving, and beyond. Look through our list of 50 Ham Side Dishes. You can tailor the side dishes to the holiday or occasion, but baked ham will also be great with Asparagus Gratin, Corn Pudding, Pineapple Casserole, and Make-Ahead Yeast Rolls.

How To Store Baked Ham

Leftover baked ham can be stored in an airtight container or tightly wrapped in aluminum foil for 3 to 4 days. Reheat in the microwave, or bake the ham in a bit of the pan juices until warmed through.

If you have more than you can eat in a few days, freeze the ham. Seal the ham in storage wrap or aluminum foil, then in a ziplock bag. Push out as much air as you can, and store for up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in the fridge when you're ready to eat it again.

More Ham Recipes

Looking for another ham for your feast? Try one of these favorites:

Ingredients

1 (5- to 6-lb.) fully cooked boneless spiral-cut ham
Water
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup honey
1/4 cup whole grain Dijon mustard
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ground allspice

Directions

Let ham come up to room temperature:

Unwrap the ham, and let sit at room temperature for at least 1 hour and up to 2 hours.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Bake the ham:

Meanwhile, position a rack in the lower third of the oven, and preheat the oven to 300°F. Place the ham, flat-side down, in a roasting pan or other shallow baking pan. Pour water into the pan to a depth of 1/4 inch.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox

Cover tightly with foil. Roast 12 to 15 minutes per pound, or until an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the meat registers 130°F. Remove the ham from the oven and uncover. Increase the oven temperature to 425°F.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Prepare the glaze:

While the ham bakes, stir together the brown sugar, honey, mustard, cinnamon, and allspice in a small bowl.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Glaze the ham:

Spoon one-third of the glaze over the ham, and roast for 10 minutes. Repeat. Then, spoon the rest of the glaze over the ham and roast for 15 minutes or until the glaze sizzles and begins to form a crust.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox
Let rest before serving:

Let the ham rest for 20 to 30 minutes before serving. Baste frequently with the pan juices, which will thicken as they cool. Serve warm, drizzling the slices with pan juices.

Caitlin Bensel, Food Stylist: Torie Cox